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General provisions about regulations | |
42 Regulations under this Part of this Schedule may contain such incidental, | |
supplementary and transitional provision as appears to the Inland Revenue | |
to be appropriate. | |
Part 7 | 5 |
Entry with warrant to obtain evidence of offence | |
Power to issue warrant | |
43 (1) The appropriate judicial authority, if satisfied on information on oath given | |
by an officer of the Board that— | |
(a) there is reasonable ground for suspecting that an offence involving | 10 |
serious fraud in connection with, or in relation to, tax is being, has | |
been or is about to be committed and that evidence of it is to be found | |
on premises specified in the information, and | |
(b) in applying under this paragraph the officer acts with the approval | |
of the Board given in relation to the particular case, | 15 |
may issue a warrant in writing authorising an officer of the Board to enter | |
the premises, if necessary by force, at any time within 14 days from the time | |
of issue of the warrant, and search them. | |
(2) The appropriate judicial authority is— | |
(a) in England and Wales, a circuit judge; | 20 |
(b) in Scotland, a sheriff; | |
(c) in Northern Ireland, a county court judge. | |
(3) Where in Scotland the information relates to premises situated in different | |
sheriffdoms— | |
(a) petitions for the issue of warrants in respect of all the premises to | 25 |
which the information relates may be made to the sheriff for a | |
sheriffdom in which any of the premises is situated, and | |
(b) where the sheriff issues a warrant in respect of premises situated in | |
his own sheriffdom, he shall also have jurisdiction to issue warrants | |
in respect of all or any of the other premises to which the information | 30 |
relates. | |
This does not affect any power or jurisdiction of a sheriff to issue a warrant | |
in respect of an offence committed within his own sheriffdom. | |
Meaning of offence involving serious fraud | |
44 (1) An offence that involves fraud is for the purposes of this Part of this | 35 |
Schedule an offence involving serious fraud if its commission has led, or is | |
intended or likely to lead, either— | |
(a) to substantial financial gain to any person, or | |
(b) to serious prejudice to the proper assessment or collection of tax. | |
(2) An offence that, if considered alone, would not be regarded as involving | 40 |
serious fraud may nevertheless be so regarded if there is reasonable ground | |
for suspecting that it forms part of a course of conduct that is, or but for its | |
detection would be, likely to result in serious prejudice to the proper | |
assessment or collection of tax. | |
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(3) Sub-paragraphs (1) and (2) are without prejudice to the general concept of | |
serious fraud. | |
Approval of application by Board | |
45 (1) The Board shall not approve an application for a warrant under this Part of | |
this Schedule unless they have reasonable grounds for believing that use of | 5 |
the procedure under Part 6 of this Schedule (order for delivery of | |
documents) might seriously prejudice the investigation. | |
(2) Section 4A of the Inland Revenue Regulation Act 1890 (c. 21) (Board’s | |
functions exercisable by an officer acting under their authority) does not | |
apply to the giving of Board approval under this paragraph. | 10 |
Extent of powers conferred by warrant | |
46 The powers conferred by a warrant under this Part of this Schedule are not | |
exercisable— | |
(a) by more than such number of officers of the Board as may be | |
specified in the warrant, | 15 |
(b) outside such times of day as may be so specified, and | |
(c) if the warrant so provides, otherwise than in the presence of a | |
constable in uniform. | |
Exercise of powers conferred by warrant | |
47 (1) An officer of the Board seeking to exercise the powers conferred by a | 20 |
warrant under this Part of this Schedule or, if there is more than one such | |
officer, the one who is in charge of the search— | |
(a) if the occupier of the premises concerned is present at the time the | |
search is to begin, shall supply a copy of the warrant endorsed with | |
his name to the occupier; | 25 |
(b) if at that time the occupier is not present but a person who appears | |
to the officer to be in charge of the premises is present, shall supply | |
such a copy to that person; and | |
(c) if neither paragraph (a) nor paragraph (b) applies, shall leave such a | |
copy in a prominent place on the premises. | 30 |
(2) An officer who enters the premises under the authority of a warrant under | |
this Part of this Schedule may— | |
(a) take with him such other persons as appear to him to be necessary, | |
(b) seize and remove any things whatsoever found there that he has | |
reasonable cause to believe may be required as evidence for the | 35 |
purposes of proceedings in respect of such an offence as is | |
mentioned in paragraph 43(1), and | |
(c) search or cause to be searched any person found on the premises | |
whom he has reasonable cause to believe to be in possession of such | |
things. | 40 |
But no person shall be searched except by a person of the same sex. | |
(3) In the case of information contained in a computer that— | |
(a) an officer who enters the premises as mentioned in sub-paragraph | |
(2) has reasonable cause to believe may be required as evidence for | |
the purposes mentioned in paragraph (b) of that sub-paragraph, and | 45 |
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(b) is accessible from the premises, | |
the power of seizure under that sub-paragraph includes a power to require | |
the information to be produced in a form in which it can be taken away and | |
in which it is visible and legible. | |
Items subject to legal privilege | 5 |
48 (1) Nothing in this Part of this Schedule authorises the seizure of items subject | |
to legal privilege. | |
(2) Items “subject to legal privilege” means— | |
(a) communications between a professional legal adviser and his client | |
or any person representing his client made in connection with the | 10 |
giving of legal advice to the client; | |
(b) communications between a professional legal adviser and his client | |
or any person representing his client, or between such an adviser or | |
his client or any such representative and any other person, made in | |
connection with or in contemplation of legal proceedings and for the | 15 |
purposes of such proceedings; | |
(c) items enclosed with or referred to in such communications and | |
made— | |
(i) in connection with the giving of legal advice, or | |
(ii) in connection with or in contemplation of legal proceedings | 20 |
and for the purposes of such proceedings, | |
when they are in possession of a person entitled to possession of | |
them. | |
(3) Items held with the intention of furthering a criminal purpose are not subject | |
to legal privilege. | 25 |
Procedure where documents etc are removed | |
49 (1) An officer of the Board who removes anything in the exercise of the powers | |
conferred by this Part of this Schedule shall, if so requested by a person | |
showing himself— | |
(a) to be the occupier of the premises from which it was removed, or | 30 |
(b) to have had custody or control of it immediately before the removal, | |
provide that person with a record of what he removed. | |
(2) The officer of the Board shall provide the record within a reasonable time | |
from the making of the request for it. | |
Document not to be retained if photograph or copy sufficient | 35 |
50 Where anything that has been removed by an officer of the Board as | |
mentioned in paragraph 49 is of such a nature that a photograph or copy of | |
it would be sufficient— | |
(a) for use as evidence at a trial for an offence, or | |
(b) for forensic examination or for investigation in connection with an | 40 |
offence, | |
it shall not be retained longer than is necessary to establish that fact and to | |
obtain the photograph or copy. | |
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Access to or supply of photograph or copy of items removed | |
51 (1) If a request for permission to be granted access to anything that— | |
(a) has been removed by an officer of the Board, and | |
(b) is retained by the Board for the purposes of investigating an offence, | |
is made to the officer in overall charge of the investigation by a person who | 5 |
had custody or control of the thing immediately before it was so removed or | |
by someone acting on behalf of any such person, the officer shall allow the | |
person who made the request access to it under the supervision of an officer | |
of the Board. | |
(2) If a request for a photograph or copy of any such thing is made to the officer | 10 |
in overall charge of the investigation by a person who has custody or control | |
of the thing immediately before it was so removed, or by someone acting on | |
behalf of any such person, the officer shall— | |
(a) allow the person who made the request access to it under the | |
supervision of an officer of the Board for the purpose of | 15 |
photographing or copying it, or | |
(b) photograph or copy it, or cause it to be photographed or copied. | |
(3) Where anything is photographed or copied under sub-paragraph (2)(b) the | |
photograph or copy shall be supplied to the person who made the request. | |
(4) The photograph or copy shall be supplied within a reasonable time from the | 20 |
making of the request. | |
(5) There is no duty under this paragraph to grant access to, or to supply a | |
photograph or copy of, anything if the officer in overall charge of the | |
investigation for the purposes of which it was removed has reasonable | |
grounds for believing that to do so would prejudice— | 25 |
(a) that investigation, | |
(b) the investigation of an offence other than the offence for the purposes | |
of the investigation of which the thing was removed, or | |
(c) any criminal proceedings that may be brought as a result of— | |
(i) the investigation of which he is in charge, or | 30 |
(ii) any such investigation as is mentioned in paragraph (b). | |
(6) The references in this paragraph to the officer in overall charge of the | |
investigation is to the person whose name and address are endorsed on the | |
warrant concerned as being the officer so in charge. | |
Endorsement and custody etc of warrant | 35 |
52 (1) Where entry has been made with a warrant under this Part of this Schedule, | |
and the officer making the entry has seized any things under the authority | |
of the warrant, he shall endorse on or attach to the warrant a list of the things | |
seized. | |
(2) The following provisions (which relate to return, retention and inspection of | 40 |
warrants), that is— | |
(a) in England and Wales, section 16(10) to (12) of the Police and | |
Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (c. 60), and | |
(b) in Northern Ireland, Article 18(10) to (12) of the Police and Criminal | |
Evidence (Northern Ireland) Order 1989 (S.I. 1989/1341 (N.I. 12)), | 45 |
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apply to a warrant under this Part of this Schedule (together with any list | |
endorsed on or attached to it under sub-paragraph (1)) as they apply to a | |
warrant issued to a constable under any enactment. | |
Part 8 | |
Falsification etc of documents | 5 |
Falsification etc of documents | |
53 (1) A person commits an offence if he intentionally— | |
(a) falsifies, conceals, destroys or otherwise disposes of, or | |
(b) causes or permits the falsification, concealment, destruction or | |
disposal of, | 10 |
a document to which this paragraph applies. | |
(2) This paragraph applies to any document that the person— | |
(a) has been required by a notice under Part 1, 2, 3 or 5 of this Schedule, | |
or an order under Part 6 of this Schedule, to deliver, or to deliver or | |
make available for inspection, or | 15 |
(b) has been given an opportunity in accordance with paragraph 1(3), | |
6(3), 11(3) or 14(3) to deliver, or to deliver or make available for | |
inspection. | |
(3) A person does not commit an offence under this paragraph if he acts— | |
(a) with the written permission of a General or Special Commissioner or | 20 |
an officer of the Board, | |
(b) after the document has been delivered or, in a case within Part 2 of | |
this Schedule, inspected, or | |
(c) after a copy has been delivered in accordance with paragraph 23(1) | |
or 27(3) and the original has been inspected. | 25 |
(4) A person does not commit an offence under this paragraph as it applies by | |
virtue of sub-paragraph (2)(a) if he acts after the end of the period of two | |
years beginning with the date on which the notice is given or the order is | |
made, unless before the end of that period an officer of the Board has | |
notified the person, in writing, that the notice or order has not been complied | 30 |
with to his satisfaction. | |
(5) A person does not commit an offence under this paragraph as it applies by | |
virtue of sub-paragraph (2)(b) if he acts— | |
(a) after the end of the period of six months beginning with the date on | |
which an opportunity to deliver the document was given, or | 35 |
(b) after an application for consent to a notice being given in relation to | |
the document has been refused. | |
(6) A person guilty of an offence under this paragraph is liable— | |
(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory | |
maximum; | 40 |
(b) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not | |
exceeding two years or a fine or to both. | |
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